Josh Norris

Mock Drafts

Monday's Mock

It seems clichéd, but Rick Spielman likes prospects from Notre Dame, and Te’o immediately fills a need. We aren’t sure if he will play at a high level on more than two downs, but the Vikings might think so.

A wide receiver is certainly possible, but I think the NFL covets Williams more than those of us on the outside believe. He is often mentioned as a 3 technique, but I think Williams does his best work quickly penetrating from the 0 or 1 alignment.

The Jaguars might have their selection go quarterback at pick No. 33, but it is tough to wait on a signal caller you believe in. However, I’m not sold on this pick being Geno... it could easily be Matt Barkley or E.J. Manuel.

Just because I project this pick does not mean I agree with it. Quite the opposite, actually. However, Watson appears to be locked into the first-round despite his inexperience. The athleticism apparently did not translate to workouts, and Watson has a good number of technique issues.

I really think Brown is going to remind John Fox of Jon Beason out of Miami. Some will call him small... but give me every single linebacker who is deemed “undersized.” Browns is aggressive on first contact to fight through blocks and has tremendous lateral speed.

Like the Jaguars, this selection could be a number of quarterbacks, but Manuel fits the bill in many categories. “Clean slate” and “coachable” are words frequently floating around Manuel, which leads me to think the NFL believes the QB was held back by coaches in college.

Hopkins has a legitimate chance of being a much earlier pick, possibly even Carolina if they stay at No. 14. His style is very consistent and reliable, which some evaluators might think is tough to find in this receiver group.

Jordan is an outstanding talent who shows comfort in space and in coverage. Expect him to play the strong side linebacker role and add versatility to the Jaguars defense. When comparing his other tools, I am actually least confident in Jordan’s pass rushing ability, but his ceiling is very high in that area.

Fisher probably tops some teams’ boards, just as he does ours, and although the Cardinals have mentioned they are happy with their tackle situation... it might not be the truth. The Chippewa would instantly bring consistency to a porous offensive line.

Don’t pigeonhole Star as a nose tackle, since he can help the entire three man front in a variety of different ways. Sure, he wasn’t effective on every one of his snaps, but he was on the field for 91.2 percent of the team’s defense plays in 2012.

The Lions might be the floor for all three offensive tackles. Riley Reiff appears locked in at one of the guard spots, so the team needs to find its edge protectors. Johnson is an excellent talent who can play immediately.

If Milliner is not selected here, he might drop a bit. In this scenario, I think the Browns have narrowed their list to Milliner, Barkevious Mingo, and Ezekiel Ansah. Of the three, Milliner would likely have more impact during his rookie season.

The closer we get, the more confident I am that this will be the pick. A “get your guy when you can” scenario, if you will. However, I wouldn't be surprised if the quarterback run does not take place until later in the first-round.

The loss of their top corner will hurt, but the Jets fared fine with Antonio Cromartie as their top CB. Mingo would add youth to the edge pass rushing unit, combining his talents with Coples and Wilkerson who play in the versatile front.

I believe the Rams have narrowed down their early pick to Austin or DeAndre Hopkins. I’m not sure Hopkins is available at No. 16, so the Rams could move up to select the dynamic “plus” slot target here.

Fluker appears to have a lot of teams intrigued, to the point that some might try him at left tackle. We aren’t sure if the Chargers are one, but Fluker would improve that offensive line as a mauling right tackle... or guard.

The Bengals could stay at 21 and select Eric Reid, since the team’s brass appears to prefer prospects from larger schools. However, Vaccaro is a dynamic option able to line up against slot receivers and tight ends at the line of scrimmage.

The Jets need a pass rush and someone to score touchdowns. With the selection of Mingo earlier, Eifert would tremendously help in the red zone and between the numbers. There are few prospects who high point the catch like he does.

A bit of a drop, but this would be a great landing spot for the inexperienced Ansah. In this situation he would line up as a 5 technique end. Ansah is already a dependable run defender who needs to learn to create separation on his own.

Rhodes is an aggressive, in your face corner who loves to jam and ride at the line of scrimmage. That style appears to fit the Saints, however, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Rhodes selected a few spots later.

In moving to a four man front, the Cowboys lack a true 3 technique defensive tackle whose main job is to penetrate. Richardson’s is very athletic for his size and can shoot gaps off the snap or run the line to chase.

A perfect landing spot for the talented pass rusher. Carradine appears to be on track to play in 2013, but if not the team can afford a small amount of snaps from the Seminole. He could blossom in 2014.

Taylor wins in a variety of different ways, holding his own in off man or zone situations but shining as a press corner. He is at his best when attacking and disrupting the catch point. Taylor wastes very little movement.

Hayden is going to be selected early, it is just a matter of how high. The quick closing corner gets excellent vision and tracks the football to disrupt the target. Some have listed him as this year’s top prospect at the position.

Cooper could be selected much higher, but I am always wary of placing interior offensive lineman early in the first-round. However, there is some buzz around Cooper possibly playing center, which is more coveted than guard.

It seems clichéd, but Rick Spielman likes prospects from Notre Dame, and Te’o immediately fills a need. We aren’t sure if he will play at a high level on more than two downs, but the Vikings might think so.

A wide receiver is certainly possible, but I think the NFL covets Williams more than those of us on the outside believe. He is often mentioned as a 3 technique, but I think Williams does his best work quickly penetrating from the 0 or 1 alignment.

The Jaguars might have their selection go quarterback at pick No. 33, but it is tough to wait on a signal caller you believe in. However, I’m not sold on this pick being Geno... it could easily be Matt Barkley or E.J. Manuel.

Just because I project this pick does not mean I agree with it. Quite the opposite, actually. However, Watson appears to be locked into the first-round despite his inexperience. The athleticism apparently did not translate to workouts, and Watson has a good number of technique issues.

I really think Brown is going to remind John Fox of Jon Beason out of Miami. Some will call him small... but give me every single linebacker who is deemed “undersized.” Browns is aggressive on first contact to fight through blocks and has tremendous lateral speed.

Like the Jaguars, this selection could be a number of quarterbacks, but Manuel fits the bill in many categories. “Clean slate” and “coachable” are words frequently floating around Manuel, which leads me to think the NFL believes the QB was held back by coaches in college.

Hopkins has a legitimate chance of being a much earlier pick, possibly even Carolina if they stay at No. 14. His style is very consistent and reliable, which some evaluators might think is tough to find in this receiver group.